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Russian River Campground closed to tent camping & vehicles/trailers with canvas or screen walls
For more information contact: Bobbie Jo Skibo Interagency Management Coordinator Chugach National Forest 907-288-7739 office 907-362-1527 cell August 28, 2012
Cooper Landing – Effective immediately, the Russian River Campground is closed to tent camping and vehicles/trailers with canvas or screen walls. Only hard-sided campers will be allowed. The closure is in place to minimize human-bear conflicts and the risk of potential harm to people and or property due to recent bear activity. Access to fishing, hiking and other activities in the Russian River area remains unchanged. This closure is a prohibition on overnight camping using tents and vehicles/trailers with canvas or screen walls within the Russian River Campground only.
On August 26th, two vacant tents were collapsed by bear in the Russian River Campground in two separate incidents. The first incident occurred at approximately 7:15 am according to an eye witness who observed a black bear lying on a collapsed tent. The witness proceeded to yell until the bear left the area. The second incident occurred sometime after 11:00 am and involved a bear that had torn open an unoccupied tent and scattered its contents. Both incidents included property damage but no human injuries. In addition, no attractants were observed that could have lured the bear into their campsites. “Public safety is paramount and we needed to make this decision even with decreasing seasonal visitation. At this time of year, bears are still frequenting the river and nearby recreation sites. Visitors need to exercise caution and bear awareness including keeping all attractants properly stored while camping.” said Travis Moseley, Seward District Ranger.
The Forest Service and Alaska Recreational Management, the company that operates the Russian River Campground, are taking steps to inform visitors with campsite reservations who may be affected by this closure and to provide alternative campsites in other campgrounds in the area such as Cooper Creek, Tenderfoot and Trail River. To cancel or change your reservation to another campground due to this prohibition, visitors can call the reservation service, Recreation.gov, at 877-444-6777. In addition, information about the tent closure will be distributed through media contacts and internet message boards.
The Forest Service in coordination with other federal, state, and tribal partners have implemented numerous management strategies on the Russian and Upper Kenai rivers since 2006 to minimize human-bear conflicts. Strategies include food storage regulations and fish waste management techniques to decrease the opportunity for bears to obtain human-generated food sources from visitors in this area. All campsites in the Russian River Campground are outfitted with bear resistant food storage lockers for visitor use. In addition to these measures, Forest Service in coordination with Alaska Department of Fish and Game will continue to monitor bear activity to determine if one or more bears may need to be removed from the area to protect public safety.
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Attachment:
RRBEAROrder.pdf
Description: RRBEAROrder.pdf
